


To the victor goes the Spoils

by Testing_Ground



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, He's highkey stupid so he kinda walked into it, I love making Magdaleno suffer, Shit happens yo, This is a very loose definition of graphic, what else can I say?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-07
Updated: 2018-09-07
Packaged: 2019-07-08 00:50:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15919596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Testing_Ground/pseuds/Testing_Ground
Summary: Magdaleno was on a winning streak until he met a certain demon of "royalty."





	To the victor goes the Spoils

**Author's Note:**

> He was cold-blooded~!

Dealing with the devil was a very frightening idea to most sane demons but second to that was dealing with a very special kind of demon called Lorenzo. Anyone who has been in demonic circles knows who he is, someone akin to royalty, and what he does, brutalty of the most insidious caliber. With him was a list three earth rotations long of people he's wrong, of chaos he's caused, of crime he's committed... Under the rip age of 873. Anyone with a brain would know better but Magdaleno was not one to fall under hearsay.

Such a shame he didn't stop while he was ahead.

It started simple enough. Magdaleno proved to be interesting to bet against and even more interesting to banter with.

"Is the church boy getting nervous?" Lorenzo teased just before he was surprised to Magdaleno's winning hand.

" _God acts in mysterious ways but I don't."_ Being a skeleton had perks. The faint upward shift on his teeth was almost unnoticeable. He even was talking in Spanish, an arrogant air floating above him while some demons spoke in whispers.

"He's getting him angry."

"I can't wait to see Lorenzo snap."

"I don't be here when that happens."

Lorenzo threw the cards back at the table under Magdaleno's collecting and shuffling of the deck. With a sigh, Lorenzo leaned back on his chair, his foot balancing the chair on its back legs. He slowly opened his eyes to the demons talking about him and gave them a curt smile. Harrison was the only one who would dare stand close to him and that warranted Lorenzo curling a finger and motioning him to listen in hushed breaths.

Magdaleno was trying to hear the conversation that was happening but the razor edge look in Harrison's eye pushed him back in his chair. After a few seconds, Harrison gave a small nod amd returned to standing perfectly straight behind him. Lorenzo waved something in his hands and tilted his chair down enough to look back at Magdaleno.

"¿ _What is that?_ An IOU?" Magdaleno gave a wink and a snide chuckle. Nothing serious because that's all it was.

In the blink of an eye, Lorenzo dropped the chair back on the ground and slammed his open palm that carried the slip of paper right onto the table. All the cash that was pilled on Magdaleno's side flew into the air and floated back down around the table, scattered everywhere.

"Ey, ey, ey, ey! _Relájate, Loco!_ " Magdaleno snapped as he scurried to collect any money that spilled to the floor. One demon tried reaching for a bill but earned the hardest part of his foot, "Back off!"

" _Cálmate, mariachi_..." Lorenzo purred as he leaned back the chair, "What I'm betting goes beyond money."

Magdaleno gripped the bill with all his strength as he turned his head back to Lorenzo. On his face, a playful smile on his face and narrowed eyes that said nothing but trouble. "What did you have in mind?" He returned to his seat with dirtied bills joining the rest of his winnings.

Lorenzo was slow to respond and the surrounding demons were holding their breaths. Magdaleno was feverishly tapping away his fingers. Any faster he would have tapped away his bones away. "Well...?" He asked.

"Let me dramatic, baby, considering these are higher stakes... Human, right?" Lorenzo asked, "Life cut short? Power get to your head? Wanted to milk this planet for all it was worth? Let's not keep secrets."

Magdaleno didn't even twitch at his invasive questions and rather scoffed at it, "A bad decision on my part mostly. I had no options left and I regret it every second."

"Desperation, eh?" Lorenzo said, sinking back to face Magdaleno directly. "Not exactly a reason I would give up humanity for but attachments are what make human unique wouldn't you say?"

"Not really but that's just me." He said. Does being human also involve resurrecting your dead brother only for the demon to completely back out and leave you trapped as the undead? Wild, Magdaleno would call it but that was then and this is now. "Can we get back to the deal again?"

"Oh right, quit your worrying I haven't forgotten. Human turned into a walking shell of your former self, irony at its finest!" He laughed to which Magdaleno growled at, "Regardless, I can seen as a bit of an... Influential demon of sorts so - and hear me out - I get you your body back."

"Really? That easy? If you gonna go that far, it's not me who needs my body back but someone else."

"Doesn't matter who it is. You tell me who you sold your soul to and I'll convince them to give you whatever they want."

"How generous of you-"

"But if I win, I get you and whoever you have with you." Lorenzo's tone darkened but he keep that charming smile of his. "You will be a part of the Asturias Family for all your days."

Magdaleno was quiet throughout his proposal and he gave the idea some thought. If he was to win, he would be in the clear. All the problems he's caused could be fixed and he could disappear without having to bother anyone again. However, the thought of being made a servant if he lost weighed heavily on his conscience. If he was stuck being around him for all his days, he would have blown his brains out at the nearest opportunity but then who would take care of Antonio. He would never want to leave him alone much less with Lorenzo.

He was none to keen on being made as property but his luck had got him this far. Besides he would have done anything to give Antonio his life back. With his money and Antonio as a human again, he could reunite his family, he could give them a better life, he could give them luxury...

He could remove the stains he left on his family.

Lady Luck only has to shine above him once more and then he would never have to bother with her again.

"... How shall we go about it?"

Lorenzo's smirk had grown when he asked. He reached for the deck of the cards and extended it out to any demon brave enough to step forward. "First five cards. Who ever has the better hand walks out with the riches."

"Simple enough." Magdaleno took a deep breath, which is doubted as possible. He was seconds away from having his fate decided. He was gonna give Antonio the world. Even if he didn't win, he could only get out as fast as he could and try again elsewhere. To him, Lorenzo was just another demon who talked big. Besides, so long as he was true to his word he'd let him prattle on about his "royal" bloodline.

A red skinned demon who looked dressed for a funeral stepped up and took the deck into his shaky hands. He shuffled the deck in an orderly fashion, oddly enough, and straighten it out. One card was placed on Magdaleno's side and one was placed on Lorenzo's side. This repeated another four times as the two looked at each other, unflinching. Magdaleno had his hands on the tables, knitted together as he sat straight. Lorenzo was leaning forward on the table, his elbows on the table and his hands bridged together to cradle his chin.

After the last card was dealt to Lorenzo and the deck was softly placed between them, the demon hurried back to his friends who were comforting the terrifying minute he endured.

"Who's going first?"

"Doesn't matter."

Magdaleno bit the bullet and lifted up his cards first as Lorenzo stayed still. Either to be courteous or because he was that confident was debatable. In a swift turn of his wrist, his cards were straightened out and spread out on his right hand. Two Aces, one of heart and the other of spades. Following it was three Fives, of hearts, clovers, and spades.

A Full House.

Magdaleno was over the moon with his cards but it would be foolish to show it off. He did the best he could to keep a straight face but Lorenzo could tell by his faint smile that he had something good.

"Aren't you going to see your cards?"

Lorenzo picked his head of slightly and parted his fingers to reach for his cards. He only gave them a quick glance before slowly placing them back down. "Well, that's quite a downer..." He said as the surrounding demons stepped even further away from them. "Let's get this over with."

Magdaleno could feel himself grinning from cheekbone to cheekbone. "Are you saying you're gonna fold?" Magdaleno teased out his victory a bit longer.

"Maybe but let's see this hand of yours. It must be good, you've smiling since you've read them." Lorenzo pestered for a reveal and Magdaleno could at least play nice for a few more minutes.

"Since you asked nicely, I believe I can." Magdaleno flicked his wrist to collect his cards under one and gracefully reveal his winning hand to Lorenzo. His Full House. "Pretty impressive, isn't it?"

Lorenzo had no real indication of what emotions swirled around him when he looked at his hand. That is until he let out a laugh and then a string of hearty laughs. "Oh my, either my royal line is starting to show its face or I must have read my cards wrong!"

Magdaleno brows arched in question but soon his eyes widen in fear. His heart dropped when Lorenzo started to flip his cards over.

An Ace.

A Ten.

A Jack.

A Queen.

A King.

All of Diamonds. He got it. He absolutely got it.

A Royal Flush.

"A real downer it must be..." Lorenzo feigned his sympathies but the insidious grin on his face coupled with Harrison's eyes piercing Magdaleno's very soul proved otherwise, "No point in beating around the bush now." Lorenzo stood up, to reveal what was under the slip of paper. A sigil. "Welcome to the Family."

Magdaleno was still in shock, he was hunched over the table reading over his cards, over and over. He couldn't have lost, he couldn't have, he couldn't have, he couldn't have... And yet he did. Nothing could beat a Royal Flush. How did he get the best hand?

Lorenzo took slow steps to Magdaleno's side while he was still processing his loss but he was quick to notice. Before Lorenzo even reached him, Magdaleno flipped the table over and bolted out of the room. Harrison stabbed the table to stop it in place while all the money scattered across the floor, available for any demon to reach out and take it. Lorenzo remained still while Harrison was already standing beside him.

"Shall I get him back?"

"Give it a minute." Lorenzo said but his face twisted into cruel excitement. "Let's give him some hope first."

Magdaleno was quick to escape the room but he still had to get out of the main casino floor that was also littered with demons but unless he bumped into them in passing, most of them were more focused on their machines and the other table top games such as craps and blackjack. He was fast, barreling past hoards and hoards of demons, managing to even slip under a few's legs and make a clean escape out the exit. Sure, there were a few comments such as "where's the fire?" and "who died?" Generic teasing coments but they hardly phased him. He was nearing light and that meant an exit.

He stomped his heels on the carpet and looked around the casino floor for any sign of Lorenzo and his lackey. Not even a passing glance.

He was in the clear...

At least he thought.

Gasps and screams were heard and growing louder as darkness covered the entire room and blocked Magdaleno's exit. He looked at the shadows that seeped from the wall and into the floor. They inched closer and closer to Magdaleno, wrapping themselves around his ankles. He rapidly kicked them off but they only retracted for a second before fully lunging back at him and gripping him even tighter.

More tendrils shot out from the wall and attempted to restrain Magdaleno. Lighting coursed through his fingers as he tried to paralyze them, which worked for a time until he was overwhelmed by the amount. They had pushed his arm back onto his chest while his other arm was being pulled forward into the black void. His legs were gripped by two separate tendrils but he had firmly kept them in place. Two more were gripping his face, digging into every crevice that would allow it. With all his might, he was trying to escape the shadows that were pulling him closer to it. Out of the corner of his eye, Lorenzo was gingerly walking towards him. The soft thuds of his boots on the carpet were all that could distract Magdaleno from the violation he was feeling.

"You shouldn't waste too much strength, Harrison here isn't even trying." Lorenzo said, standing beside Magdaleno in mere seconds. Harrison was not far behind and under his feet was a shadow with streaks spread out from it that went to cover the entire room. "Now why did you have to go and run off? Ruining these people's good time. I was going easy on you..." He lowered his head as chuckles left from the partial gaps between his teeth. "Now I think you need some punishment."

With a snap of his fingers, Lorenzo jumped back a good few feet. Sounds of his bones snap and crunch were present for a few seconds before the bloody curling screams that left Magdaleno drowned them out. Arms were the first to shatter, his fingers being ripped piece by piece, his radius and ulna were forcibly ripped aparts from each other and snapped in half. His humerus was shattered in numerous ways until it was nothing but dust. His ribs were chipped off his sternum. His skull was cracked and filled with shadows making the crack big, almost trying to split his head in two.

His legs at least put up some sort of fight but they didn't last long. They broke and when Harrison was motioned to stop, he could drop to the floor, writhing in agony as his bones were repaired and put back together. The pain of which was almost described as a searing and burning, like getting burned alive.

Magdaleno never cried often because it was his job to stand strong for his family but his tolerance could only go so far. His eyes were pouring out tears of pain as he could barely muster the will to move.

"I've heard church mice squeal louder but that will do." Lorenzo chastised him but was soon squatted down to his pathetic form. "Now you know what happens to those who don't do what their king says." Lorenzo rose up only to stomp a boot on Magdaleno's neck, "You're lucky I liked you enough not to kill when you started winning. Now let's not play games. I came to get what I won."

"What... Makes you think... I'll listen to you...?" Lorenzo had let go on his neck. Magdaleno was slowly rising to his knees as glared at his mocking gaze.

Lorenzo's wide grin had flipped to a frown, "You still think you have any power here? I guess Harrison didn't do a good enough job breaking you. I guess I don't need you as much as I thought." His fins darken his eyes, "Kill him and make him suffer."

Magdaleno braced for death. How fitting he would die because his own overconfidence. However, nothing happened. In fact, Harrison was very much hesitating. His face was stitched in discomfort as he held something in his hands.

"Harrison, what's wrong with you? Kill him!" Lorenzo snapped at his lackey but noticed what he was holding, "What is that? Give it here."

Harrison shook his head but his consent meant nothing as Lorenzo violently ripped the photo from his hand. Lorenzo looked over it with annoyance but on close inspection, his face twisted mischeviously. "Look at what I have here." Lorenzo showed off the photo to Magdaleno and his heart sank. It was a photo of him and Antonio. It was fairly recent of them as skeletons, taken like a selfie with them both smiling at the camera. "It seems you were more than desperate when you sold your soul. Heartbroken seems more like it."

"Give me that photo back." Magdaleno was struggling to stand up but he had to get that photo back. He had to protect Antonio even to the very end.

"Why should I? It seems more fun if I don't." Lorenzo was waving the photo around more than carelessly, "I wonder how much more fun it would be if I killed this brat instead of-"

Magdaleno's mind went blank in that instant, "Don't you touch him!" He yelled at the top of his nonexistent lungs as he suddenly gained the willpower to stand and rush to Lorenzo, his finger overflowing with electricity as he tried to attack him. Lorenzo was caught offguard by it but Harrison repsonded quickly. Tendrils were gripping Magdaleno again and they were straining to hold him back. His hand wasn't just coursing with electricity, it was his whole body. He was pushing himself closer to Lorenzo until Harrison swept his legs so he was back on the floor.

"Oh my! Did I strike a nerve?" Lorenzo mockingly asked, laughing at Magdaleno. "I won't tease you anymore. We both know what's gonna happen. You don't want your _precious baby brother_ to die and I own you technically so it really doesn't matter what you want."

Magdaleno didn't speak but he knew Lorenzo was right. No matter what, Magdaleno's feelings, thoughts, and objections didn't matter. He was at his mercy.

"I won't kill him only because he's your leash, you'll do anything to keep him safe and happy. So at least he's useful for something." Lorenzo tossed the picture and it landed just in front of Magdaleno. Harriso could feel less of a strain trying to keep him constricted so it was official. He released Magdaleno and all he did in response was pick up the photo of his brother and himself. "Your ability to care about someone other than yourself is always hammered in as a good thing but by the looks of it, it brings nothing but trouble."

Magdaleno's hat covered his face but two tears landed on the photo he cradled in his hands. Harrison had a frown on his face and his eyebrows curved downwards. Lorenzo still grinned in satisfaction.

"Chin up, we still have a lot of work to do."

**Author's Note:**

> Antonio, I'm sorry I basically ruined your life!


End file.
